IHOP Changes Name Back to Reflect Pancakes

Confirming what many had suspected all along, IHOP officially changed its name back to symbolize its original International House of Pancakes name, from its strategically temporary IHOb monicker — with the letter “b” standing for burgers. Considered a playful marketing ploy, the popular restaurant chain informed its followers that “We’re giving away 60¢ short stacks on July 17 from 7a-7p for IHOP’s 60th birthday. That’s right, IHOP! We’d never turn our back on pancakes (except for that time we faked it to promote our new burgers)” in a recent Facebook post.
As it turns out, the name change tactic, which was initially met with humorous industry resistance, was put in place to promote its new burger line, in turn getting its customers to view its menu away from just hearty breakfast options. IHOP president, Darren Rebelez likely said it best in his explanation to Business Insider, stating “Just because we have pancakes doesn’t mean we can’t do anything but pancakes. That’s what we’re after: Giving more people more reasons to come to IHOP more often.”
In case you missed it, Starbucks plans to eliminate plastic straws in stores by 2020.